18.10.16

With the translation of "Ai no Souretsu," at last, we have completed translations for all the songs on Atom Miraiha No. 9. You can go check them out over at This is NOT Greatest Site. For the first time in our history, not only have we written extensive translation notes for each and every song on the album, but each set of English lyrics is also singable with the original melody. If I do say so myself I think a lot of them came out very well in that regard, so I encourage you all to try singing them.

I probably wouldn't have written so many translation notes, but for the fact that I keep hearing from you readers about how much you love the notes and how much you wish there were more of them. Thus, I endeavored to deliver. This was all for you, folks. So if you enjoyed the notes and the translations, please leave us a comment on this post to let us know. We spent far more time translating this album than any other and we'd love to hear your reactions.

Also, check out this video of Auto-Mod performing their song "Toki no Souretsu" at the most recent edition of the Toki no Souretsu concert series, held on March 21st, 2015 at Koenji High. For those of you who don't already know, the backing vocalist is counter-tenor drag queen Selia, who also did backing vocals on Buck-Tick's album Tenshi no Revolver, on the tracks "Mr. Darkness and Mrs. Moonlight" and "Revolver."

.Also, if you liked Buck-Tick's "Ai no Souretsu," check out London After Midnight's "Sacrifice"...

...and Sawada Kenji's "Toki no Sugiyuku Mama ni." This guy was one of Sakurai's favorites growing up, and a clear influence. He's old now, but have a look at him when he was young and beautiful, and dig that leather mesh costume!

14.10.16

Ladies and gentlemen, we present you with the singable English translation of "Jukai." It took us a few days to work up to this one due to its heavy themes, but we hope you won't be disappointed.

Sakurai almost certainly got the title of this song from the Aokigahara Jukai, the forest at the base of Mt. Fuji near the Five Lakes region in Yamanashi Prefecture. Jukai, which literally means "Sea of Trees," was chosen as the name of this forest because the forest stays green all year round, and when viewed from atop the surrounding mountains, it looks like green waves lapping at the base of Mount Fuji. Not only this, but the the forest is notoriously dense and maze-like. The trees grow directly on lava floes dating from Mr. Fuji's latest eruption, in the 9th century A.D., meaning that the forest floor is unusually uneven and riddled with potholes and lava caves. Tree roots crawl snakelike over the boulders, and iron ore in the underlying rock has a tendency to scramble GPSs and compasses alike. In addition, the unusual topography prevents the wind from blowing straight through the forest, blanketing it in eerie silence and stillness. Mr. Fuji is an important sacred site in Japanese Shinto/Buddhist tradition, and you can practically feel the power radiating out of the ground here.

A miniature shrine in a lava cave in the Aokigahara Jukai [Photo: Cayce] For reference: this cave is at least 8 meters wide and it goes down to the center of the earth, for all I know.

Though the forest is also extremely beautiful, and the trees are fairly short, meaning that sunlight readily filters down to the forest floor. Nonetheless, a feeling of gloom and foreboding suffuses the place even in the daytime - perhaps this is how the Aokigahara Jukai came to be "The Suicide Forest". Not only is it the top spot for suicide in Japan, reportedly it's the second-most popular suicide spot in the whole world, after the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The fame of the forest as a suicide spot probably began with Matsumoto Seichi 's 1960 novel Kuroi Jukai ("Black Sea of Trees"), which features a love suicide in the forest. Following this, Tsurumi Wataru featured the forest in his Complete Manual of Suicide. Reportedly, copies of the latter book are regularly found in the forest, often near bodies. During the early 2000's, as many as 100 people per year would make a suicide pilgrimage to the forest. Though that number has apparently decreased in recent years, the perimeter of the forest is still posted with signs advising potential suicides to consider their loved ones and call the advertised suicide counseling hotline. Also posted are phone numbers for bankruptcy lawyers and other services. "Your life is a precious gift from your parents. Take a moment to reconsider" is a common refrain.

A sign in the Aokigahara Jukai advertising a suicide hotline.[Photo: Cayce]

The culture of suicide in Japan goes back to the days of the samurai, when seppuku ("hara-kiri") was codified into cultural tradition as a way of taking responsibility for one's failure. Because of this and the lack of religious stigma, suicide is still more accepted in Japan than in many other countries. Combine this with a shitty economy, a masochistic work culture, and a persistent stigma against receiving mental health care, and you have a recipe for a high suicide rate. The government is trying to change things, and advertisements for suicide hotlines are now all over the train stations, but unless society changes in a fundamental way, it's unlikely that much progress will be made.

The authorities do a yearly sweep of the forest, but this is mainly to look for remains and clean up abandoned items - and there are many. Shoes, tents, and the suicide manual mentioned above are the most archetypal, along with the plastic ribbon or rope commonly used by wanderers in the forest as a guide for how to find their way out if they decide not to die after all (or if they were just in there to do a gothy photoshoot and had no intention of dying before their time). Due to the uneven terrain and the lack of paths, the forest is only navigable by this ribbon method, Minotaur's labyrinth style - unroll the ribbon behind you as you go in, then roll it back up as you come out. Go into the forest without rope at your peril. Everyone gets lost in here, as we can attest from having been there - this is not hyperbole! Some parts of the forest are even crisscrossed with ribbon left behind by the departed.

Though the authorities may not attempt to rescue anyone, some volunteer groups and individuals do try. For obvious reasons, hanging is the most common suicide method in the forest, and those fully determined to die typically get to it quickly - but others who are not so sure may camp in the forest for days or weeks at a time. Geologist Hayano Asuza makes regular sweeps of the area and reaches out to people he meets in the forest, encouraging them to choose life over death. For more info about Hayano and for beautiful film images of the forest, watch this video - but be warned, there are some human bones in here.

.And now, the lyrics to the song:Sea of TreesLyrics: Sakurai AtsushiMusic: Hoshino HidehikoI'm all alone tonight again babyDream of a dream of a memoryLosing my way in the darkI'm sinking downRight now - a dream of you maddening soaking in meYour fingertips pulling ribbonsAh upon your lips crawling all over my skinLapping the sap, try and taste itDrag you through the dirt againAnd you drag me, that's how we loveTill the shift of the seasons buries us underI'm all alone tonight again babyDream of a dream of a memoryLosing my way in the darkI'm sinking downFeels like I might forget you babyEverything, even your face, all of itDeeper and deeper it slidesI'm sinking downHere before my eyesThe night staring at meI'll melt into the nightInto the sea of treesDrag you through the dirt againAnd you drag me, that's how we loveTill the shift of the seasons buries us underI'm all alone tonight again babyDream of a dream of a memoryLosing my way in the darkI'm sinking downFeels like I might forget you babyEverything, even your face, all of itDeeper and deeper it slidesI'm sinking down ah.

For translation notes, read this translation on This is NOT Greatest Site. Feel free to add you comments below. Also, for those of you who hadn't noticed, the translations for "The Seaside Story" and "Manjusaka" are also now up complete with notes, so feel free to add your comments on those songs, too.

13.10.16

Because Dave Fromm is a good interviewer who asks good questions, we bring you a (mostly complete) translation of Mr. Sakurai's second appearance on the Dave Fromm Show. This one goes out to all your brand whores and haters of green peppers in particular. As last year, feel free to share this by linking to Blog-Tick, but please DO NOTre-post it elsewhere. Read an English translation of Mr. Sakurai's previous appearance on the Dave Fromm show here.

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Dave: How fast time passes! It's already been nearly a year since he's been on the show. This is Mr. Sakurai Atsushi!

Sakurai: Hello.

Dave: Good evening.

Sakurai: Thanks for having me.

Dave: No, thank you. It's been a year.

Sakurai: It has. Though it feels like hardly any time has passed.

Dave: Really? Last time you were on here for The Mortal.

Sakurai: That's right.

Dave: But this time you're going to talk about Buck-Tick and give us lots of color.

Sakurai: Yes.

Joe: How have you been?

Sakurai: We safely finished recording, and I made it here through the typhoon.

Dave: I'm amazed you made it here in one piece. What bad timing! Surely you were the one who summoned the typhoon.

Dave: So, did you start recording right after you came on the show last year? Or even before then?

Sakurai: No...

Dave: After that?

Sakurai: We started from spring of this year, and worked through the summer till fall.

Dave: I see.

Joe: Does that mean the recording took unusually long?

Sakurai: No, it was the same as usual. A little under three months.

Joe: Last time, we had a good listen to the album you released with The Mortal...that album was extremely focused on death. We could even describe it as your primal scream. It seems like managed to spit out all your trauma on that album. So, to make another album after that...how did that feel?

Sakurai: Well, with The Mortal, I was able to do exactly what I wanted, so I felt completely empty.

Joe: Completely empty?

Sakurai: I didn't know what to do with myself. Like I didn't have anything left.

Dave: If you lost everything, how did you continue with Buck-Tick?

Sakurai: Well, once I heard the new sound, you could say I got into a new mode.

Joe: So hearing the music set off your inspiration, and you were able to write new lyrics?

Sakurai: Yes, that's about right.

Joe: And tomorrow is Buck-Tick's 29th anniversary since your debut!

Sakurai: That's right.

Joe: It's your anniversary! Do you and the other band members have an awareness of that?

Sakurai: No, well, I don't, personally, but the Higuchis seem to enjoy "historical events," so to speak, and they know all that stuff.

Dave: They know what you did, when.

Sakurai: Yes, yes.

Dave: So they keep the archive.

Sakurai: That's right. Personally, I have absolutely no idea.

Dave: (laughs) So if today's your 29th anniversary, does that mean you released an album on the same day? How did you debut? Do you remember?

Joe: He probably has no idea.

Dave: But the Higuchis know.

Joe: Then let's ask them.

Sakurai: I think it was a VHS debut.

Joe: A VHS?

Sakurai: That's right. Our video tape debut was September 21st, I think. I think the album came out after that.

Dave: I see. So if this is the 29th anniversary, that means next year is your 30th, right?

Joe: It must be.

Sakurai: Well, yes.

Dave: Do you have any sort of awareness of that fact that you've been going for 30 years?

Sakurai: Personally, I just pass right over it...

Joe: But the people around you won't let you forget...

Sakurai: That's right.

Joe: But when you think about it, 29 years with the same members, without ever going on hiatus...that's, well...and in addition to that, you've got this originality, this one-of-a-kind status, and you've kept that...

Sakurai: When it's your own life, it just feels like yesterday, today, regular days passing. But of course, other people tend to be surprised.

Joe: I am surprised!

Sakurai: They tell us it's disgusting.

Joe: (laughs) Disgusting? It's none of their business, is it?

Sakurai: No.

Dave: So over the course of these 29 years, I'm sure you've had some ups and downs in your life...have there been ups and downs with the band, too?

Sakurai: All kinds of things have happened.

Dave: Have you ever felt like, "I don't want to ever see these guys again"?

Sakurai: That kind of thing...

Dave: There were times when you felt it?

Sakurai: Sometimes, a bit, probably. After all, if there aren't times like that, when things are going well and we're feeling good, where do we get that rush and feeling of power from? We're all just human.

Dave: But it's a bit different from a typical work situation in that you get to take breaks, right? As a band, you're not together every single day for 40 hours a week.

Joe: Of course not.

Dave: To do that for 30 years...if I had to look at Joe's face for the next 30 years, I'm sure I'd punch him.

Joe: Don't use that analogy!

Sakurai: Yeah, if you had to be together every day...

Joe: But as a band, you get to take breaks.

Dave: So you did The Mortal, and you get to refresh a bit between tours, etc. I'm sure that's very important.

Sakurai: Yes, it's very important. After all, now we're coworkers...that's what our relationship has become. At first, we were just kidding around, having fun, that kind of thing, but now that we're all grown up, we have a more serious focus on work as work. So it ends up like "sorry, I want time to myself this weekend."

Joe: Is that how it is? (laughs)

Sakurai: It's something we need.

Joe: That's what they call balance.

Dave: I guess so. But when Buck-Tick were a young band, you got into a lot of trouble, eh?

Sakurai: Not really. I suppose we had that image, but...

Dave: You never got drunk and smashed things...

Sakurai: We never did that "American rock" style thing.

Dave: Not at all?

Sakurai: Not at all. I suppose we broke a few small items here and there, but that's about it.

Joe: So you just messed up a little and passed it off as a joke?

Sakurai: We were pretty serious. I mean, maybe you couldn't have called us "serious," exactly, but we were never violent.

Dave: I feel like he's boring into me with his eyes right now.

Sakurai: No, it's fine.

Dave: I've gotten a number of emails...over the course of the past 29 years, I'm sure your fans have changed...

Sakurai: Yes.

Dave: But for you to continue your activities, you have to make a marketable product, because it's business. So what that means is that Buck-Tick as a band have continued to sell...that's extremely difficult to pull off, especially these days...

Joe: The cycle is fast.

Dave: Even as a DJ, following these bands as they're continually popping up...it's very hard to keep up. So for you to maintain your popularity, in your opinion, in your personal opinion, do you ever think about it? Is there anything you wished you hadn't paid attention to?

Sakurai: Me, myself...it's bad for business that I should say this, but though I wanted the band to sell when we were still indie, but I never went so far as to think about what we should do in order to sell. Really, we just did what we wanted to do, and we were lucky enough that we picked up a lot of great fans, and the record companies and staff liked us and wanted to support us.

Joe: No, but really. I just interviewed you and Imai for the latest issue of Rolling Stone, but the Japanese music scene these days is full of a lot of bands who are very similar, and in the midst of that, Buck-Tick have a very unique position. But when I hear you talk about it, it seems like you weren't really thinking about that - it's just a question of your specific aesthetics. I think that's something that probably no one can imitate, and on the flip side, the fact that you've been honing that sensibility for the past 29 years is really amazing.

Sakurai: (laughs) Thank you. Definitely, Imai's songwriting sensibility...he's definitely got his antenna up. But on the other hand, you've got me, and I'm just all natural...when I like something, it's "like!" and when I hate something it's "hate!"...that's me. So for balance...he's methodical, but I just burst out with what I like, and I guess...what can I say. Twenty-nine years passed.

Dave: So, over the course of the past 29 years, do you think something has changed within you?

Sakurai: Well, with regard to music, and the things I can do, I've gotten more serious about it, and put my mind and body into it. When I was young, I just thought "okay, whatever" and let it go. But as an adult, I've become more aggressive. Like, "can't I do better than this?"

Joe: I see. Like, more, more!

Dave: So now, an email from a fan. "Congratulations on your album release. This is a question for Mr. Sakurai. Currently, the Buck-Tick Tower Records Cafe is open on Omotesando. Mr. Sakurai, do you like to go shopping at places like Omotesando, or other fashionable areas? Personally, I love Yohji Yamamoto and other such brands. Lately, do you have a favorite brand? If so, what is it?

Sakurai: Oh, it's a question about brands? I wondered if it was a question about Omotesando.

Joe: That was just the lead-in to the question.

Sakurai: I really have trouble with styles and trends, and I really can't stand shopping.

Dave: Really?

Sakurai: Really. I just wear the same things...I'm wearing all black again today...

Dave: You are. A black t-shirt, and a black jacket...I'm pretty sure you wore something similar last time, too.

Sakurai: Yes, I'm sure I did.

Joe: I feel like you were wearing that same t-shirt for the Rolling Stone interview, too.

Sakurai: It's possible that I was. I'm always wearing the same outfit.

Joe: So you basically don't care about fashion, is that it?

Sakurai: That's right. I hate that thing where people try to get people to like them by showing off how trendy they are.

Joe: I see what you're saying.

Sakurai: Like, "I just bought the latest hot item!" I... quite heartily cannot stand it. [Note from Cayce: He deliberately put on fancy keigo to say this, probably as a nod to not offending any fashionistas who happen to be listening in.] But, I love Yves St-Laurent.

Joe: So does that mean you go shopping to Yves St-Laurent?

Sakurai: I do.

Dave: I've been wearing the Yves St-Laurent cologne for about 20 years.

Sakurai: Oh really?

Joe: He's just trying to claim something in common with you.

Dave: No, I'm embarrassed about it! Because to buy it, you have to go to the ladies' makeup counter area in one of those department stores...

Joe: You do?

Dave: And to go to a place like that...I mean, look at me. The women who work there always give me strange looks.

Joe: They don't believe you're actually there to buy.

Sakurai: But they have men's cologne.

Dave: But it's in the back. Why do they hide it?

Joe: Right? I wonder that too.

Sakurai: So you have to go into a busy spot with lots of people...

Dave: Under all those bright lights and sparkles...it's hard to bring myself to go there, but I do.

Sakurai: I want to see you in a place like that, Dave Fromm.

[Dave takes a break to play Buck-Tick's new single, "New World."]

Dave: So, I've gotten a lot of emails. Can I read you some of them?

Sakurai: Sure.

Dave: Everyone's calling you Acchan.

Joe: Can we call you Acchan, too?

Sakurai: Of course.

Joe: Really?

Dave: (laughs)

Sakurai: Go right ahead.

Dave: From Rumi-san. "I went to your show on September 11th. It was the first show you've played since last year, and I had a great time. You were awesome."

Sakurai: Thank you.

Dave: "This is a question for Acchan. Do you drink sweet potato shochu as a highball? [Note: a highball is a cocktail, usually involving soda water, lemon juice, and whiskey, but in this case the whiskey would be replaced with shochu.]

Sakurai: A highball?

Dave: That's right.

Sakurai: I don't really drink highballs. I like sweet potato shochu mixed with soda water these days.

Dave: Is that your recommended drink for this fall?

Sakurai: I guess so?

Joe: "I guess so," he says! (laughs)

Dave: How much do you drink?

Joe: I want to ask that, too.

Dave: Aren't you drinking less these days?

Sakurai: Not really. When I'm alone in my house, I drink, it's inevitable.

Joe: Don't tell me you drink a whole bottle by yourself.

Sakurai: Not a whole big bottle, not. [Note from Cayce: Sakurai is talking about an isshobin, a 1.8 liter bottle in which shochu and sake are commonly sold. For reference: shochu is generally about 20% alcohol by volume.]

Dave: I see, I see.

Sakurai: I'm an idiot. I drink too much.

Joe: So you basically drink every day, is that right?

Sakurai: That's right.

Joe: Clearly you love booze.

Dave: Let's go drinking sometimes!

Joe: Let's go!

Sakurai: You're right. It's healthier to drink with others.

Joe: But drinking at home is nice too, sometimes.

Sakurai: Sure, seriously, invite me out.

Joe: We'll invite you out as "Acchan"!

Dave: So do you eat snacks when you drink? What do you like?

Sakurai: Snacks...I eat them.

Dave: What do you like?

Sakurai: I like anything. Hors d'oeuvres...there's a shop in my neighborhood...

Joe: You go to a shop in your neighborhood to buy hors d'oeuvres?

Sakurai: Sometimes I go.

Dave: Really?

Sakurai: I do.

Dave: Wow. So, I hear you have a new cat these days...what's its name?

Sakurai: That was fast.

Dave: Don't you have a cat?

Sakurai: I do. Last month...the month after last...her name is Kurumi-chan.

Joe: Kurumi-chan?

Dave: What kind of cat is she?

Sakurai: She's a Bengal.

Joe: A Bengal? What kind of cat is that?

Sakurai: She's spotted like a leopard.

Joe: So in your house...do you, you know, talk in "cat-speak"? Like, "Kurumi-chan!!"

Sakurai: I do!

Dave: So she's tiny? Was she just born?

Sakurai: Actually, the day after tomorrow, she's one year old.

Dave: So will she continue to grow bigger?

Sakurai: Yes, when I've seen pictures of them, they get quite big.

Dave: I see!

Sakurai: They're ferocious.

Dave: Ferocious, are they? Moving on, from Harubou, we have, "To Acchan: I went to see Climax Together 3rd at Yokohama Arena. I was very impressed with all the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, and the set list was the best. I can't stop listening to 'Muchi no Namida' on repeat. Please tell us what your favorite song is on Atom Miraiha No. 9. I will be going to the tour and am looking forward to it!"

Joe: And that's the title of the album that's coming out next week, Atom Miraiha No. 9.

Sakurai: Yes, that's right. Well, you know me...I like very dark things...there's a song called "Ai no Souretsu," which I really love. And as an arranger and guest musician, we got Fujii Maki from minus (-) to participate in the making of the song.

Dave: Another email question. "What are your favorite ingredients for spaghetti Napolitan? My favorite is green pepper. I'll be going to the Buck-Tick Cafe, so I look forward to trying the Kyokutou Yori Ai wo Komete Napolitan." So they have Napolitan at the cafe, then?

Joe: They do. I have a Napolitan fetish.

Dave: You do?

Joe: It's my favorite.

Sakurai: I'll treat you, so feel free to eat five or six of them.

Dave: You can eat that much?

Sakurai: It's true that the green pepper has a nice texture. And in Sendai, there's a place with really great Napolitan...we often do our after parties there...well, I won't say the name. [Note from Cayce: The Japanese fanbase practically exploded over this comment. FYI, Buck-Tick's parties are invite-only. You can't just waltz in. The security staff will literally murder you.]

Sakurai: Anyway, there's a place like that. And they bring it out on those old-fashioned aluminum plates...it has ham, and those red octopus-cut hot dogs, so it's very old-fashioned. I like it because it's old fashioned, I guess.

Dave: I know what you mean.

Joe: And you sprinkle as much Parmesan on it as you can!

Sakurai: That's right.

Joe: And if you're wearing white clothing it's sure to get stained.

[Dave talks about the tour dates for the Atom Miraiha Hall Tour, and remarks on the name of the Nagoya venue.]

Dave: So when you look at your tour schedule, do you think, "this looks fun" or "I want to try this out" or anything like that?

Sakurai: It's really hard on my throat, which makes me very nervous, and I get a bit neurotic about it.

Dave: What about now?

Sakurai: Not yet, but when the tour starts, I can't really get loud and roudy at the after parties with everyone else.

Joe: As a vocalist, I guess you can't.

Sakurai: I can't. Though I intend to enjoy things in my own way.

Dave: When I look at this kind of schedule, I just think about the delicious local cuisine in each city...

Joe: That's what I think about when I think Niigata. That's the first thing in my head. [Note from Cayce: All Japanese men are exactly the same in this regard.]

12.10.16

We know, we haven't been putting up the translations to the new album as fast as we usually do. The reasons for this are multifarious, but here's one big reason: this album lends itself to writing more in-depth translation notes than any album Buck-Tick have released so far, and since I know y'all love to read the notes, based on your invaluable feedback, we are endeavoring to go the extra nine yards and leave no depths unplumbed by our research, so as to provide you with exhaustive and incomprehensible notes. Whoops, I mean, inexhaustible and comprehensive notes. It's four in the morning here in Japan.

Anyhow, here's another song for which, between one thing and another, we spent several hours researching and writing notes. Friends, enjoy "Future Song -Mirai ga Tooru." Yes, we did render this as "Mirai ga Odoru" in our previous posts - a stellar example of the perils of quick reading of tiny kanji on a computer screen! The translator's peril. In our defense, 「踊る」 "odoru" and 「通る」 "tooru" have a major radical in common. Does that mean we're also suffering from Gestaltzerfall? Read the translation to find out.

To pedants eager to one-up us: it was a mistake based on lazy reading, not lack of kanji knowledge. Chastise us all you like for being lazy (no doubt we deserve it) but never doubt that we know our fucking kanji.

To the rest of y'all: you realize what this means? It means that instead of "Here Comes the Future," an alternative translation for the song's subtitle would be "The Future is Toll." Literally. If that doesn't make your 'hawk stand at attention, I don't know what will. Also, we'll say that we're particularly pleased with our translation of this song, and we encourage you all to sing along with the English lyrics during the tour, if you have trouble with Japanese.

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In other news from Buck-Tickistan, there's something else we were wrong about, so those of you who cheer every time Cayce is wrong about something, cheer away. The thing we were wrong about: Mr. Sakurai's new cat Kurumi is in fact a Bengal, NOT a Scottish Fold. We assumed she was a Scottish Fold due to the pet shop tag pictured in his debut photo of her in the June issue of F.T. However, we have to assume this Scottish Fold tag was for another kitteh in the shop, because Sakurai assured Dave Fromm on live radio that Kurumi is, in fact, a Bengal. And between you and us, we're pleased to hear it. We've long been deep admirers of Bengals. They're known for their tricky personalities due to their closeness to their wild leopard lineage, but if anyone can tame a tricky kitten, Mr. Sakurai is the one to do it.

If any of you would like to purchase the Kurumi t-shirt or any other Atom Miraiha tour goods through us, just send us an email. View the tour goods here (just keep scrolling till you see them.)To those of you who object to goths doing cute: Sakurai may have put his cat on a t-shirt, but only because he saw Tsuchiya Masami put HIS cat on a tote bag first.

One-of-a-kind rock band Buck-Tick got their start in the mid 1980's as an iconic product of Japan's "band boom." Maintaining the same lineup of members for the entirety of their 30-year career, Buck-Tick have had an enormous influence on the subsequent development of Japanese rock and rock-n-roll culture.

In 1989, the band scored their first chart-topping hit with their third album, Taboo. Just two years after their debut, they joined the ranks of Japan's top artists, playing to sold-out crowds at the Nippon Budoukan and the Tokyo Dome.

Never content to rest on their laurels, the band followed their initial success by deepening their pop sensibilities with a darker worldview, and expanding into more experimental territory, taking chances on radical new performance styles and technology in a process of continuing evolution.

In 2012, the band established their own new label, Lingua Sounda, in conjunction with their 25th anniversary. To celebrate the anniversary, the band held a festival on September 22nd and 23rd entitled "Buck-Tick Fest 2012 on Parade" in Chiba Port Park at an outdoor venue designed specially for the occasion. In addition to two hour-long headlining performances by Buck-Tick, the festival also featured a complete roster of artists who contributed tracks to Buck-Tick's second tribute cover album, Parade II -Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick.

In 2013, a double-feature documentary film about the 25th anniversary, The Buck-Tick Phenomenon, was released in cinemas throughout Japan to great acclaim.

In 2016, the band returned to their original label, Victor Entertainment, after 20 years of work with other labels. New World, the band's first single since rejoining Victor, was released on September 21st, followed by a new album, Atom Miraiha No. 9 on September 28th.

In 2017, Buck-Tick celebrated their 30th anniversary, and were awarded the Inspiration Award Japan, a special prize given to music artists who have had an outsize influence on the development of pop music in Japan. The band accepted their award on September 27th at MTV Japan's live music video awards show Video Music Awards Japan 2017 -The Live-,” where they also gave a special live performance.

On September 20th, the band released a 30th anniversary best album entitled Catalogue 1987-2016. Following this, on September 23rd and 24th, the band performed a pair of concerts, Buck-Tick 2017 The Parade -30th Anniversary, "Fly Side" and "High Side," at Tokyo's Odaiba Special Outdoor Event Area J, attracting a crowd of more than 20,000 people over two days. Then on November 15th, the band released its first 30th anniversary single, Babel.

Before releasing Babel, the band embarked on an 18-stop national tour, The Day in Question 2017, opening at Omiya Sonic City on October 21st and featuring a stadium performance at Takasaki Arena in their home prefecture of Gunma, before concluding with a pair of finale concerts at the Nippon Budoukan on December 28th and 29th.

In 2018, the band released another single, Moon Tell Me Goodbye, on February 21st, followed by a new album, No. 0, on March 14th. The band are currently in the middle of a new tour, Buck-Tick 2018 Tour No. 0, to promote the new album.

One-of-a-kind rock band Buck-Tick got their start in the mid 1980's as an iconic product of Japan's "band boom." All hailing from the small rural town of Fujioka, Gunma Prefecture, the five band members met while still in high school, bonding over a mutual love of records during informal gatherings at the home of band founder, lead guitarist and main songwriter, Hisashi Imai. Though the band's original lineup featured a different vocalist and Atsushi Sakurai on drums, after graduating high school and moving to Tokyo to pursue their dream of becoming professional musicians, the band soon switched Sakurai to vocals, and bassist Yutaka Higuchi recruited his older brother Toll Yagami to play drums instead. The band have maintained the same five members since that time.

After being signed to the indie label Taiyo Records, the band rocketed to stardom, making their major label debut on Victor Entertainment within a year, and taking the Japanese music scene by storm with their infectious punk melodies, spiky bleached hair, bold costumes, and theatrical stage shows. Within two years, they topped the charts with their third album, Taboo. Recorded in London, Taboo marked a turning point for the band, from a teenage pop sensation into something darker. Buck-Tick continued into darker territory with their next album, Aku no Hana (The Flowers of Evil), named for the poetry of Charles Baudelaire.

Never content to rest on their laurels, Buck-Tick followed their initial runaway success with a push into more experimental territory, spending many more hours in the studio to create ever deeper, more layered records. Koroshi no Shirabe -This is NOT Greatest Hits- (The Song of Murder), a self-cover album featuring heavily reworked versions of the band's earlier material, was followed by another album, Kurutta Taiyou (Crazy Sun), now regarded as a classic of Japanese rock and roll. From this album forward, vocalist Sakurai took a greater role in the band's creative output, penning darker, more introspective lyrics based on personal experience rather than the romantic fantasies of the band's previous works. While lead guitarist Imai remained the band's main composer and creative director, rhythm guitarist Hidehiko Hoshino also began to contribute more to the songwriting, cementing the band's mature sound.

Over the next two decades, Buck-Tick continued to evolve, exploring a diversity of genres ranging from new wave to industrial, shoegaze, punk, electronica, dreampop, surf rock, rap, Latin dance, goth, and symphonic metal. Drawing on both Western and Eastern influences, the band developed a unique style instantly recognizable despite their continuous genre-hopping. Layers of minimalist riffs, melodies, and electronic tracks synergize into an immersive, kaleidoscopic sonic experience far more than the sum of its parts. Tied together with the tight grooves of the Higuchi brothers' bass and drums and the bold simplicity of Hoshino's rhythm guitar, Buck-Tick's songs feature Imai's instantly memorable guitar licks like a second vocalist, even as Imai often adds eccentric backing vocals to Sakurai's rich baritone lead vocals. Cosmic themes of love and death abound in the piquant, poetic lyrics, which traverse as many genres as the music, overflowing with inspiration from art, literature, and philosophy.

The result is something utterly original, which continues to exert a tremendous influence on the progress of Japanese rock music to this day. Maintaining a large and wildly devoted cult following, the band continue to perform for sold-out crowds at Japan's most well-respected music venues, and are regularly cited as an influence by younger Japanese artists. A number of Buck-Tick's songs were also used as themes for popular anime series, expanding the band's fame internationally among fans of Japanese pop culture in dozens of countries around the world.

The band's recent achievements include establishment of their own new record label, Lingua Sounda, in 2012, and a 25th anniversary festival held in September 2012 at a special outdoor venue in Chiba Port Park, featuring an all-star roster of artists who contributed tracks to Buck-Tick's second tribute cover album, Parade II -Respective Tracks of Buck-Tick-. In 2013, a double-feature documentary film, The Buck-Tick Phenomenon, was released to great acclaim in theaters across Japan.

In 2016, Buck-Tick returned to their original label, Victor Entertainment, after 20 years of separation, releasing a single, New World, followed by Atom Miraiha No. 9, their first new studio album since 2014.

In September 2017, the band cemented their legacy as Japanese rock legends by celebrating their 30th anniversary with a two-day outdoor concert series, Buck-Tick 2017 The Parade -30th Anniversary, "Fly Side" and "High Side," held on Tokyo's Odaiba Island before a crowd of more than 20,000 people. The next week, the band took to the stage again at MTV Japan's Video Music Japan awards to accept the Inspiration Award Japan, a special prize given to music artists who have had an outsize influence on the development of pop music in Japan.

In October 2017, the band embarked on a national tour, The Day in Question 2017, performing a selection of hits from their back catalog to celebrate their anniversary, and featuring a stadium performance at Takasaki Arena, near the band's home town.

Entering their 31st year of major label activities, the band show no sign of slowing down. Two new singles, Babel and Moon Sayonara wo Oshiete (Moon Tell Me Goodbye), preceded the band's 21st studio album, No. 0, and the band are currently in the middle of a new tour, Buck-Tick 2018 Tour No. 0, to promote the new album.